


Multifaceted

by Lannakitty



Category: Sanctuary (TV)
Genre: Gen, Humor, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-12-20
Updated: 2011-12-20
Packaged: 2017-10-27 14:42:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,286
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/296954
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lannakitty/pseuds/Lannakitty
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Magnus looked up at him with open curiosity and concern. "I see," she said. "This is going to be one of those days isn't it?"</p>
            </blockquote>





	Multifaceted

**Author's Note:**

  * For [leoraine](https://archiveofourown.org/users/leoraine/gifts).



> For leoraine who wanted some Will!centric fic with bonus points for james watson and team-y goodness. Thanks to grav_ity for the beta. all remaining mistakes are my own.

"Magnus," Will said, "I feel fine, really."

"I'll be the judge of that," Magnus said. "To the infirmary with you, William. I want to make sure you weren't infected with whatever that man was carrying." Her tone was light, but her eyes were far more serious.

Frowning, Will followed Magnus to the infirmary. He knew she was right, but all he wanted to do was go to bed after a long week in the field. He didn't feel different and his exposure to what the Praxian had been carrying had been minimal; just a small splash on his face. It had tasted like sour milk and burned a little, but he'd been able to clean it off quickly. He'd been fine the whole trip back to the surface and the plane ride home. If something was going to happen, it would have.

A thorough and, he thought, unnecessary battery of tests later, Magnus couldn't find anything wrong with him. Will shrugged back into his shirt and grabbed for his hoodie.

"I told you I feel fine. Whatever they hit me with down there, it didn't do anything."

Magnus removed her gloves with small snaps, and picked up the tray of bloodwork. "I'll run these final tests and then we'll see but until then I'd rather you take it easy." The corner of her mouth twisted into small smile. "Perhaps you can catch up on that paperwork you been avoiding for the last few weeks?"

Will chuckled. "I'll get to it first thing in the morning, Magnus."

"See that you do." She winked. "Good night, Will."

* * *

For the first time in a long while, Will dreamed of flying. Unlike his dreams as a child where he effortlessly soared through his neighborhood, he found flying to be very awkward. Will spent a lot of time bumping into things and floating around aimlessly in space. He woke slowly wondering when his room had become so cold or when his bed had become so hard. He rolled over on his back and stared at the ceiling. Well, that was different. He blinked slowly, and wondered why his bed was on ceiling.

Wait, that wasn't right. Will bolted upright and realized that he was sitting on the ceiling of his room.

"Oh, shit," Will said, looking around. What had- The Praxians. Whatever had been in that spray, it hadn't been caught by Magnus' tests.

Right. So. He was on the ceiling. He could deal with this. First things first; was he stuck here? He tested his hand he didn't appear to be affixed to the wall like that one time he'd started to transform. He noticed, however, his movements made him bounce little bit on the ceiling. Testing this out, he found found that if he pushed off the ceiling he'd slowly drift back until he gently bumped against it again. He could fly. Okay. That was something he could deal with. It was better than becoming the Hulk. Flying wasn't bad. Unfortunately the blood was rushing to his head from his position sitting on the ceiling. He needed help. He needed to find Magnus, or Henry or somebody.

Crouching on the ceiling he sprang for his door, grabbing for the handle. He tried to pull himself down but it was like he was fighting gravity. Turning the handle to open his door proved a small challenge; his body kept trying to rise into the air. Frowning at his predicament Will launched himself into the hall. He tried to twist like he was swimming in the air so that he wouldn't crash the ceiling, but didn't quite make it. He ended up sliding baseball style into one of the chandeliers. Grumbling to himself, Will began to crawl his way down the hall on hands and knees, using the moulding and architecture to help him push himself along. He took the right then the left to Magnus's room and hoped that she would still be there and not already up and in her office. Will considered trying to launch himself back to the ground carrying something heavy so he could actually walk, but figured that the reality of trying to execute that move would just invite more trouble.

Standing on the ceiling (which took some balancing) before her door, he reached up and knocked. She didn't immediately answer, so he rapped his knuckles on her door again in the hope that she was still in her rooms. after a moment heard her answer movement from within her room. The door opened.

"Yes?" Magnus said. She blinked in surprise, looking up. "Oh."

"Hey, Magnus," Will said. He waved.

Magnus looked up at him with open curiosity and concern. "I see," she said. "This is going to be one of those days isn't it?"

They were pondering how to get Will downstairs when Kate happened across them. After she finished laughing, she darted back down the hall to her room and returned with one of her many belts. Looping one end around Will's wrist, she tugged him down from the ceiling. Helen looped the cord from a bathrobe around one of his feet, which helped him keep on a more or less even keel. Kate glanced back at him, her eyes gleaming in amusement.

"How ya doing, Superman?"

"I feel like a Macy's Thanksgiving day parade balloon," Will muttered.

"Flying is a cool super power to have though," Kate offered.

Will nodded which made his whole body bob in the air. "Yeah, but I appear to be floating more than flying." He sighed. At least, he thought, he wasn't morphing into the Hulk or some sort of lizard.

Kate helped Magnus get Will downstairs to the infirmary where they were able to strap him down. Kate brought down some breakfast and they left Will's hands free so he could eat. They kept trying to float toward the ceiling, so Will decided to skip the coffee. Magnus returned from examining WIll's blood. She was wearing a small frown.

"So what happened, Magnus? I felt fine yesterday and all week!"

"As far as I can tell it's a either a nano-machine or a virus."

"You can't tell?" Will blurted out.

Magnus gave him a sad smile and shook her head. "Not as of yet. I will figure it out," she reassured him, voice strong. "What I surmise is that you were hit with a small dosage and our infection prevention measures washed most of them away. A few survived and adapted to your physiology. Once they did that, they began to multiply at an astonishing rate. I estimate that I managed to capture one in my sample. There are hundreds now."

"Great. Why am I floating?"

"It's curious," Magnus said. "I'll need to run more tests and I'm sending a copy of my findings to James in London." She patted his leg. "We'll have this figured out in no time."

No time turned into a couple hours. Kate sat with him for awhile. Henry and Ashley made appearances when they heard what had happened, one with a tablet so he could watch movies or do work (but mostly watch movies), and the other with cookies from Biggie.

At about lunchtime Will suddenly felt heavy. He lay back on the bed and realized after a moment that wasn't hard to do at all.

"Uh, Magnus?"

Magnus looked up from her microscope. "Will?"

"I'm feeling kinda... " He brought a hand up and rubbed his eyes. Everything went blurry for a moment. The bed creaked threateningly under him. His vision cleared and he shook his head to clear it. "Wow, that was weir- "

He was cut off as the bed squealed and collapsed out from under him. The wind knocked out of him, he gasped for air. Magnus was on her feet and over by his side seconds later. He looked up at her, feeling dazed. She reached for his hand and nearly fell off her feet trying to lift his wrist.

Will fumbled with the straps that had been keeping him stuck to the bed. His limbs felt slightly heavier, the exact opposite of the odd buoyancy he'd been experiencing. He stepped onto the concrete and it cracked under him.

"Okay, what is going on?" he asked.

Magnus studied him critically. "If I had to guess," she said, carefully lifting one of his hands and letting it fall back again. "I'd say you've become super dense."

"Super dense."

She gave him a brave smile. "We'll figure it out," she said. "The fact that the nano-virus is unstable is actually a good thing. I means it hasn't settled yet. That's something I think we can exploit."

Will sighed. "Well, it guess this is better than floating," he said, taking a step toward the door. His footfalls shook everything in the room, though he didn't feel like he was stomping.

"Hmm," Magnus mused, looking around. "Perhaps you should remain here."

Will gingerly settled to the ground. Nevertheless, there was a substantial sound of something heavy resting on the floor. Will rubbed his eyes. "Dare I ask how much weight those beds were rated for?"

"Half a ton, I'm afraid," Magnus said with a smile.

Will reached over and gingerly picked up the tablet, resuming the movie he'd been watching. At least the iPad didn't crumble under his fingers.

The sudden and unexpected invisibility two hours later was easier to deal with even if it was extremely creepy to look in the mirror and see nothing but clothing. He'd not yet been moved into an isolation suite, at least.

"Woah."

Will looked over his shoulder. "Hey, Ash."

"Oh good. Would you stay with Will for a bit while I make a call?" Helen asked.

Ashley nodded. "Yeah, no problem!"

Magnus smiled at Will, a twinkle in her eye. "Can I trust you not to strip and cause any trouble around the house?" she asked, holding up a finger in warning. "I'm wise to the ways of the invisible, remember."

Will was sure she could somehow see him blushing. "I'll be fine," he assured her.

"I'm going to consult with James. I'll return soon." Magnus left at a brisk pace.

Will sighed and hopped onto a new bed. Today was interesting, even for the Sanctuary.

Ashley held out the book she was carrying. Her smile was tentative. "I brought you this." She handed him the book. "Thought it might give you a laugh." She stuffed her hands into her hoodie pockets. "Henry gave that to me when I was stuck in here after I got back."

"So you've got super powers: A guide for the new hero," he read the title aloud.

Ash tucked a lock of hair behind an ear. "Look, uhm," she blew out a long breath. "It will be okay. it might suck right now. When all of this is done you might be Superman. Or maybe you'll be like Wolverine or I don't know... " She shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe Aquaman."

"Oh god!" Will gasped in mock horror.

Ashley grinned. "Its weird and maybe you won't feel entirely like yourself. It will be okay." She smiled at him. "You're family, Will. We'll help you."

Will pulled her into a one-armed hug. "Thanks Ash." He squeezed her shoulder.

"Hey," she said, nudging him. "You were there for me. If you end up stuck with weird teleporting powers or something, I'll help you."

Will hugged her again. "I'll be your Jedi Padawan and everything."

Ash wasn't one for long sappy moments so she stepped away and hopped onto the other bed. "So how are you feeling anyway? Aside from transparent."

Will scratched the back of his head. "I'm trying to keep positive. So far it's just been annoying. Plenty of people live with abnormalities every day."

"Yeah no kidding."

"It's weird getting into the club late though."

Ashley laughed. "Tell me about it. At least you're in good company. Mom probably doesn't remember and anyway living a long time isn't exactly something you can teach, but Henry and I got your back, dude."

Will smiled, then realized she couldn't see him. He sighed and flopped back on the bed. "This is going to take some getting used to."

"What does mom think it is?"

"She's not sure," Will said. That was the part that really worried him.

"Hey Ash, have you seen Will?" Henry asked, sticking his head into the room. Kate was behind him.

"Oh, ha ha. Very funny."

"Woah!" Kate said.

"Oh my god, I didn't mean it in that- What the hell happened? You were super dense when I saw you last!"

"Welcome to my life," Will muttered. He sat up. "Need something?"

"No, I just wanted to see how you're holding up," Henry said, looking him up and down. Or trying to at least.

Kate walked around behind him and waved a hand behind his head. Will batted her hand away.

"Dude," she said, looking impressed. "Do you have any idea-"

"I'm not going on any heists," Will drawled. "Magnus already told me not to."

Kate smirked and shrugged a shoulder before hopping up onto the bed beside him. "I wouldn't dream of suggesting something illicit," she said with mock indignity.

"The prank potential is kind of epic," Henry commented.

Will gave him a look then rolled his eyes when he realized Henry couldn't see him. Will sighed. "No."

Henry shrugged. "So you need anything? Some games? Oh. Dude. you have the best poker face right now." He held up his hands. "Wait right there. I'll get some cards. This may be your one chance to beat Kate."

"Hey!"

Will laughed.

The card game did a lot to take his mind off his current situation. Kate started out going easy on him, but then after too many losing hands she broke out her A-game. The invisibility proved to be just as huge an asset as Henry had predicted. During Kate's second term as dealer, something tickled his nose. He drew his arm around his face and sneezed. The mug he was holding shattered.

"Woah!" Henry jumped up and out of the way.

"Sorry," Will apologized.

"Hey! I can see you!" Ashley said.

Kate prodded his shoulder. "I can too."

"I'll go grab mom," Ashley said, rising from the table.

Will looked down at his hands and grinned.

"Well, you're winning streak is over," Kate said. She plucked the cards off the table and began to shuffle.

Will laughed a bit ad began to brush the shattered ceramic into a pile. "Sorry about the cup." He rose and went over to the closet to get a towel. The door ripped off it's hinges when he opened it.

"Crap."

"Woah," Kate and Henry said at about the same time.

Will sighed and set the door down. He tossed Henry a towel. It rocketed across the room.

"Super strength?" Kate asked.

Will gently picked up the door. He lifted it easily. "Yeah." He set it back in place, scowling at it.

"Maybe you should sit down," Kate said.

Will nodded.

"At least we can see you again," Henry offered, trying to find the good in the situation.

Will smiled but he didn't really feel it.

Magnus returned, eyes quickly scanning the room. "Will! It's good to see you again," she said, trying to add a bit of levity to her tone. When he joke didn't even get a chuckle from Henry, she asked. "What's happened?"

"Will's got Superman level super strength," Ashley answered.

"Are you all well?"

Will sighed and sit down, folding his hands together so he wouldn't accidentally break anything else. "Sorry about the door."

"Doors can be repaired," she dismissed. "James is looking over the test results I sent to him and we're pursuing options. How are you feeling?"

"Other than a tickle at the back of my throat and suddenly becoming a one-man-wrecking crew, I'm just fine."

Magnus shooed the other out of the room and subjected Will to a further battery of tests. Will's super-strength was minimally tested before he sneezed again and was suddenly on fire. It was the weirdest sensation, being on fire. It was also loud and suddenly he couldn't breathe, the flames eating the same oxygen he needed.

Magnus sprayed him with the fire extinguisher then tackled him with an emergency fire blanket which managed to get him into a smouldering state rather than a blazing one. She hustled him into an isolation room.

The fire phase didnt last long, thankfully, but then his body became elastic and it took a lot of focus for him to remain in a human shape. After his body solidified, his senses expanded. All of them. Henry understood some of that because of his own abnormality, and came down with a box of things for Will.

"Right. So. We have earpugs." Henry stuffed those in Will's ears and Will instantly felt a bit better.

"A special filter, designed by yours truly, designed to block the most offensive smells." HEnry handed that to Will. It looked like a souped up air filter. Will put that on and things became a bit more bearable.

"And finally, a pair of his wielding goggles to help block the light." Henry handed those to Will as well. They helped reduce the stabbing pain behind his eyes. It didn't help his sense of touch, but that was better than the full out assault on his senses.

"Thanks," Will said.

Henry gave him a thumbs up and raced off to help Magnus run another series of tests over Skype with Watson. Will lay back on his cot and tried to sleep. The fabric of his scrubs and the sheets grated over his skin. Taking deep breaths, he tried to set his mind at ease and fall asleep.

He woke with a gasp, unable to breathe and feeling too dry. He madly rapped his fists on the door until Magnus and Henry ran over and let him out. Will took off down the hall, gasping, he stripped off the items Henry had given him, and his scrubs top as he ran. He reached his destination and shucked of both his pants and boxers in a single move. Opening the security lock on the door, Will ran up the short set of stairs and dove into the water of Sally's tank. Part of his mind rebelled, but he _knew_ he could breathe here. He inhaled, gasping, and the fire in his lungs died.

He took a few more breaths to calm down, his lungs somehow able to filter the oxygen out of the water. Oh, this was not fun.

 _"Will?"_

Will turned in the water. Sally the mermaid floated on the soft current of her tank, radiating concern.

 

"Sorry," Will said. It came muted in the water, but the mermaid seemed to understand. She swam over and touched his arm.

 _"Are you well?"_

"Not really," he said, then gave her the quick run down. Magnus and Henry arrived at the entrance to the tank while he was giving her the full story.

His time with the mermaid was relaxing and all too brief.

His first inkling was when he suddenly began to notice everything. It was like when he was in the zone as a profiler. All the minute details fought for his attention and the world around him seemed to slow to a sluggish crawl. Will headed for the surface of the water. His lungs were changing, the amount of oxygen becoming less as he breathed in the water. He broke the surface with a gasp just as the transition was completed.

He suddenly had an idea - but he needed to talk with Magnus and Watson before this abnormality changed him again. With precise strokes, Will made for the edge of the tank and the ladder out. He waved to the Mermaid and snagged a towel. Wrapping it around his hips, he raced back down the hall toward the infirmary, leaving wet foot-steps behind him.

"I have an idea," Will said, bursting into the room. Tesla had been brought in to consult, no doubt because of the nature of the Nanite-Virus (which was an appropriate name). James was physically present, no doubt because Skype proved too frustrating for him and thus Ashley or Druitt had been dispatched to collect him from London. Will bypassed them all and began writing on the white board; It was all so clear to him now. The nature of the nanite virus, the method of delivery and the unstable nature of the abnormalities. He wrote as fast as he could because the rate of mutation was increasing and his life did depend on it.

"I saw this on the wall when we found the man with the canister," Will said, quickly writing out an equation and a related schematic. With his mind in overdrive, it was easy. "I believe they hadn't finished what they'd set out to do before we happened upon them. Someone panicked and sprayed me. It's a nanite, but it's been programmed to operate like a retro-virus."

"Well, we figured out that much," Tesla drawled, somewhat taken aback by Will's outburst of genius no doubt.

Will ignored him and continued to recreate the board he'd only caught a glimpse of. He'd no thought it important at the time but it might be the key to his salvation. Because the nanites weren't completely programmed, they'd never settle, even if they found out how to unlock the abnormality in his own genome.

"It's sad," he reflected as he finished writing. James stood beside him as Helen and Nikola fairly attacked the board, beginning to exchange ideas in rapid fire, given this new information.

"Oh?" James asked.

"They're mimicking the effects of the vampire source blood," Will explained, though he suspected that James had come to that conclusion already. "Something the Praxians fought against for so long, and the remains are using the same thing as a weapon." Will grimaced and rubbed his temples. "James-"

"We'll keep Nikola from taking too much advantage of this," James assured him in a quiet voice.

Will nodded. "How do you deal with it?"

He didn't need to explain himself. James chuckled. "One gets used to it. It was quite an adjustment."

Will nodded. "Everything seems so slow. So simple."

"Events. People. You see their actions stretch out ahead of you as a series of possibilities and invisibilities, all the details crystal clear, all clamoring for attention," James added.

"Yes," Will said, breathing out a sigh.

"Good friends, good company. Good Brandy."

"Brandy?"

"Hm yes. Quite essential," James said with a twinkle in his eye. He rested a hand on Will's shoulder. "I find that reading and learning help. Keeping busy with many projects also. Keep your mind busy and you cease to see how slow everything is."

Will nodded.

"Should we stabilize you in this state, I'll help you learn to cope with it."

He nodded, already his mind was racing off in several directions and while he could reason a great many things, he didn't have the education to support the speed at which his mind wished to problem solve. It was frustrating. His head began to pulse with his heartbeat and he felt dizzy.

"William?"

Will blinked. Things were going grey. "Uhm."

"Will perhaps you should sit down," Watson said, guiding him to sit down on a handy chair. "You look pale."

Will looked up at him, trying very hard to focus. "I don't have much time. I-" he blinked. There was something important he needed to say, wasn't there. "I-"

"We'll get you through this," Watson said, his hand once again on Will's shoulder.

Will nodded. There were thoughts racing through his head but time seemed to slow. "Hopefully I won't get stuck with an inconvenient Abnormality," Will joked, blinking slowly. He head felt like it was full of cotton. Will swallowed. "Maybe... Maybe I'll take a nap." The wore stretched out and Will found himself slipping into darkness...

* * *

Bright sunlight woke him. Squinting and putting a hand in front of his face, Will discovered he was back in his bedroom.

"Welcome back," Kate said, setting down the tablet. "I'll go grab the boss."

Will blinked at the spot where she'd been and wondered what had happened. Magnus arrived a few moments later and took his temperature.

"How are you feeling," she asked as she withdrew the thermometer.

"Like I was run over by a truck."

"How much do you remember?"

"Super strength, super smarts, I turned into fire at one point..." He looked up at her. "Did that really happen."

Magnus smiled and nodded. "It wasn't a dream if that's what you're asking. Your recollection of the formula on the wall actually allowed Nikola, James and I to come up with an effective treatment."

Will relaxed into the bed. "Thanks."

"Not at all," she said, sitting down on the edge of his bed. "I wouldn't let a friend down."

"How close."

Magnus reached over and squeezed his shoulder. "It's always closer than I'd like," she admitted.

Will tried for some levity. "Do I get to keep any of the cool super-powers?"

She chuckled. "I'm afraid not."

Will laughed and rubbed the back of his head. "Oh well. For the best probably." He thought back to his fears and concerns and the adjustments he'd had to make. He was able to escape but some abnormals couldn't. It was... It was something to think about.

Magnus smiled and after he'd had a few silent moments to think said, "I would be most interested to hear your thoughts on your experience? If you wish to talk about it, of course."

Will smiled and nodded "Yeah. Yeah I'd like that."

~fin


End file.
